Yup’ik Tool Use at Temyiq Tuyuryak—Indigenous Approaches to Artifact Analysis

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Temyiq Tuyuryaq: Collaborative Archaeology the Yup’iit Way" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Tool analysis is a foundational component of archaeological research and site interpretation. Methods for analysis include a rigorous set of categories including, but not limited to, raw material type, tool type, use-wear, retouch, etc. Although these categories are informative, telling us about a specific set of criteria and values central to contemporary archaeology, they offer limited insight to the values and ideals on the community in which they were made and used. This research revisits artifacts from Temyiq Tuyuryaq, excavated and curated in 1960 at the Museum of the North in Fairbanks, Ak. A sample of the artifacts were reanalyzed relying on both western and indigenous based criteria. I explore tool use, cultural preferences, implications for gender and age, and symbolism. Indigenous frameworks were established relying on exploration of Yup’ik oral stories, art, songs, dance and language. The results of this analysis provide Yup’ik definitions for tool use at Temyiq Tuyuryaq and demonstrate contributions of Indigenous archaeology in providing a more nuanced understanding of the past.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Temyiq Tuyuryaq: Collaborative Archaeology the Yup’iit Way   •
• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 25339